jan4夤
Jyutpingjan4
Yaleyàhn
Definition
Late at night.
writtentime
How it's used
This character is almost exclusively used in the compound 夤夜 to describe the deep, late hours of the night. It carries a slightly literary or formal nuance compared to everyday terms like 深夜 or 夜深. You will rarely see it standing alone in modern spoken Cantonese.
Examples
Related words
Common mistake
Do not confuse this with 寅, which refers to the third of the twelve Earthly Branches. Learners often mistake the two because they look visually similar in some fonts.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- Directional complementsThe small words added after a verb to show direction of movement, like up, down, out, in, and back. Common in everyday Cantonese.
- DemonstrativesThis and that with 呢 and 嗰, the personal pronouns, and how 哋 turns I, you, and he into we, you all, and they.
- Resultative complementsSticking a result word onto a verb to show how it turned out, like eat until full or look and find. A productive everyday pattern.
